Process of amalgamating and separating metals



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PROCESS OF AMALGAMATING AND SEPARATING METALS.

No. 537,336. v Patented Apr; 9, 1895.

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YNITED STAT S PATENT FFIQE...

HAROLD MAY BAKER, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK.

I PROCESS. OFAMALGAMATING AND SEPARATING METALS.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 537,336, dated April 9, 1895.

Application filed June 22, 1894. SerialNo. 515 ,3'78. (No specimens.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, HAROLD MAY BAKER, of

Brooklyn, in the county of Kings and State of New York, have invented a new and Improved Process of Amalgamating and Separating Metals, of which the followingis a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates to improvements in a dry process of amalgamating silver and gold, and separating it from its containing sand or other material in which it may be held.

My invention contemplates the use of an amalgam of quicksilver and iron, which is afterward amalgamated with the gold or silver and then separated from the tailings by means of suitable magnets, and the most essential feature of the invention consists in incorporating with the quicksilver, sufficient iron to render the amalgam magnetic so that the separation may readily take place, as hereinafter described. I

To these ends my invention consists of a process of amalgamating and separating ores, which will be hereinafter described and claimed.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this specification, in which the figure is a sectional elevation of an apparatus which may be used in carrying out my improved process.

- My process consists essentially in mixing with the gold or silver containing sand or other material an amalgam of quicksilver and iron, which amalgamates with the gold or silver, and then dropping the material through a magnetic field which deflects the mineral into one pile and permits the tailings to drop modification of this apparatus or any other equivalent means may be used without aifecting the principle of the invention.

As shown, 10 represents an ordinarymixing machine, which may be of any approved kind and which delivers into a hopper 11, the machine and hopper being supported on a frame In my process, I first make the amalgam ofquicksilver and iron, which is mixed with the sand, crushed ore, or other gold or silver bearing material, in the mixer 10, the amalgam being thoroughly incorporated with the said material, so that the metallic particles therein will unite with the amalgam and, when the mixing is sufficiently accomplished,'the material is dropped through the hopper 11, and the non-magnetic particles will drop, by gravity, in a straight line into the compartment 17, while the magnetic material, to wit: the amalgam, will be deflected by the magnet 13 and dropped into the compartment 16, while the lighter portions of the amalgam may stick to the magnet. These may be afterward cleaned off and the whole quantity of amalgam treated in any usual way to recover the metals.

I do not claim the process of making the amalgam of quicksilver and iron, but in order that my invention may be thoroughly and completely understood I will describe how such an amalgam may be made.' First, make an amalgam of metallic sodium and quicksilver, using one .part by weight of sodium to one hundred parts of quicksilver. The amalgam is made by grinding the two materials together in a mortar. This amalgam is placed in a clean saturated solution of sulphate of iron and the sodium decomposes the solution and the quicksilver takes up the iron, thus making an amalgam of iron and quicksilver. An amalgam of quicksilver and iron may be made also by immersing an open vessel of quicksilver in a vessel containing enough solution of sulphate of iron to cover the quicksilver. Oonnect the quicksilver with the negative pole of an electric battery and an iron rod dipped into the solution with the positive pole of the battery. An amalgam of iron and quicksilver will thus be formed which will vary as to the amount of iron contained gamating and separating metals from their therein, according to the amount of quicksilcontaining material, which consists in min- Ver, the strength of the current, and the length gling with the material an amalgam of quickof time it is allowed to act. A solution of silver and iron,and then passing the material 5 chloride of iron may be used in place of the through a magnetic field. sulphate of iron.

Having thus described my invention, I HAROLD MAY BAKER claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Witnesses: Patent 0. SEDGWICK, 10 The herein-described dry process of amal- WARREN B. HUTCHINSON. 

